WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union today condemned the House of Representatives for adopting H.R. 2679, the “Public Expression of Religion Act of 2005″ (PERA). The bill would bar the recovery of attorneys’ fees to citizens who win lawsuits asserting their fundamental constitutional and civil rights in cases brought under the First Amendment.
“The House has once again shown little regard for the Bill of Rights in voting to limit Americans’ ability to keep the government from intruding on religious expression,” said Caroline Fredrickson, Director of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office. “The bill’s supporters claim they are protecting religious freedom, when in fact this bill will undermine it. We are deeply dismayed that the House adopted this proposal and urge the Senate to reject this bill and protect the Constitution.”
The ability to recover attorneys’ fees in civil rights and constitutional cases, including Establishment Clause cases, is necessary to help protect the religious freedom of all Americans and to keep religion government-free. The Establishment Clause of the First Amendment protects the religious liberty of all Americans.
People who successfully prove the government has violated their constitutional rights would, under the bill, be required to pay their own legal fees — often totaling tens, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars. Few citizens can afford to do so. But more importantly, citizens should not be required to do so where the court finds that the government has violated their rights and the Constitution.